This article was scheduled to run as
one of the July Chess
Life's "Knight's Tour" items, but had to
be cut for space reasons. Knight's Tour is a tournament travel section
featuring events from the Tournament Life Announcements section. If you would
like your event to be considered for this department, please write to
[email protected].

Every year since 2003, on the first Sunday in August, about
80 players gather for a very unusual USCF-rated G/30 chess tournament just
across the street from Philadelphia, in Wynnewood, PA. There are three sections
but no entry fees, no set prize list, and all those involved volunteer their
time. This event is the Holly Heisman Memorial charity fundraiser, to benefit
the fund by that name at The Philadelphia Foundation (www.philafound.org ).

In 1994 Susan Hollis Bloom Heisman died after a nine-year bout
against breast cancer. Holly was first a social worker, and then a travel
agent. After her death, sister-in-law Eileen Heisman, then with The
Philadelphia Foundation and currently President of the National Philanthropic
Trust, suggested that the family start a charity trust in her name, with the
charter of supporting three of the women's causes Holly worked for: runaway
teens, battered wives, and breast cancer.

When I took over the coordination of the Fund from Eileen in
2003, I felt obligated to do something proactive to enhance its endowments and
grants. Since chess was my living and, at that time, I was an active organizer
and TD, I thought a tournament would be a great fundraiser, but how would it
work? I had no models to use as a reference. So I came up with the ideas
described above and contacted potential sponsors to donate prizes. Publishers
donated books, online sites gave memberships, software companies gave samples
of their software, individuals gave refurbished trophies, the Kaiserman Jewish Community
Center provided the playing site and janitorial fees, and the USCF the TLA and
rating fee.Tax-deductible donations to
the charity by participants were at first mandatory, and in later years became
optional. No expense money is set aside - all donations are made out directly
to The Philadelphia Foundation.

In recent years former student Howard Stern graciously
donated a trip to his studio. At first I used this as a prize but this hardly
attracted more donations. The good news is that I got to accompany the winner,
and Howard twice put us live on his popular satellite radio show! Then Shawn
Sullivan of House of Staunton brilliantly suggested Howard's contribution would
be far more beneficial if auctioned off on EBay. That suggestion turned out to
be worth more than all the other donations combined, as each year Howard fans
around the country each year get to bid on a once-in-a-lifetime trip.

At first I was the main organizer and TD but, when I retired
from those duties, new volunteers were found in Dr. Prananth Ramachandra and
Joshua Anderson, respectively. Without their work, the tournament would not be
entering its 11th year in 2013. As explained at the fund's Facebook
page, http://www.facebook.com/HollyHeismanMemorial,
the 2012 grant of over $1,000 was made to the University
of Pennsylvania, School of Social Policy & Practice, Evelyn Jacobs Orner
Center of Family Violence.